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Neville Cormack and family

Cormack's original family business, established by his father in the 1920s, dealt with shoe and slipper accessories, including the felt that led them into needleloom production during the war, and so into carpets. Cormar was among the pioneers of tufted carpet in the 1950s and has continued under the same ownership. Production is split between two plants in Lancashire, and a policy of continuous plant improvement ensures that none of the 21 machines is more than 12 years old. In the year to September 2007, Greenwood & Coope, the parent company, made £4.6m profit on £67.7m sales. Adding in some of the £3m directors' pay to the bottom line takes the profit to about £7m, which justifies a £35m valuation on the business. Past salaries and dividends take the Cormack family to £30m.